By Paul Z

Ever since the pre-production of Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood, Paramount Pictures tackled an idea to organize a film including two of the largest heavyweights of the slasher genre for a blood-soaked slash-a-thon. But even prior to the talks, fans fantasized about the concept, since, after all, twice as many killers must mean twice as much blood (or so our naïve minds once thought). For many years, the thought would only remain a fantasy, as children defended their favorite icon in schoolyards across the country.

For more than a decade following the release of The New Blood, dedicated fans waited eagerly to see the ultimate confrontation between horror icons Jason Voorhees and Freddy Krueger make it celluloid. Throughout that decade, I began to lose hope that the film would even happen, due to the horrible sequels that ultimately came in its place.  But finally, after 15 years of the initial talks, the icons found themselves side by side on the same screen, but not without making it there in shame.

            Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan was Paramount's last attempt to revive the Friday the 13th series. To do so, they heighten the budget and explored possible gimmicks to nourish and increase a bloodthirsty audience. Of course, an old idea returned to the table as director Rob Hedden suggested they introduce New Line's Freddy Krueger into the eighth installment of the series. But like the previous attempt to obtain legal use of the character in The New Blood, no one could agree with the other's offer. Since no agreements were reached, no battle would ensue. Although fans would be disappointed with the final concept of the eight film, they had no choice but to accept it. With the conclusion of Jason Takes Manhattan and its poor box office earnings, it looked like the only thing being slashed was the franchise itself.

Paramount always remained loyal to the legacy of Jason Voorhees. The films were actual sequels with each film set where the previous one left off. They also used several characters (other than Jason) more than once, such as Alice and Tommy Jarvis. The films were actually consistent with each other. I like to think of each Friday the 13th film made during the Paramount era as a chapter in the Jason Voorhees legacy. Much like a book, each chapter follows the previous one. Seldom ever will you read the first 8 chapters of a story, then have the ninth one totally disregard the events of the previous eight. Why? Because it doesn't work for an progressing story. Although it doesn't make clear logical sense to create a film that does such, Newline didn't flinch the least bit at the idea and moved forward to make films that had no relevance to the films the fans grew to love.

With the failure of Jason Takes Manhattan and a growing shame of harvesting such a franchise, Paramount decided they no longer wanted anything to do with masked slasher. Like an old overused car, Jason Voorhees was now up for sale. In 1992, Newline decided to buyout the Jason story. To many fans, it was hope for new sequels to come, but to others, it was a betrayal. Jason was now chained in the house that Freddy built.

Not taking the franchise seriously, Newline places the making of a new Friday the 13th related film in the hands of its original owner, Sean Cunningham, who then places it in the hands of two amateur filmmakers, Adam Marcus and Dean Lorey. With little useful guidance by Sean Cunningham himself, Adam Marcus arrogantly and selfishly decides to ignore all the legendary films that preceded it. The film would be called Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday with its only relevance to the rest series being the Jason Voorhees character, his background, and the setting. That's it! Marcus claims to have wanted to do something different since, in his opinion, all the previous films used the same basic formula. But when we take a look at the last time the franchise tried to do something different, as with Jason Takes Manhattan, it failed! But, of course, when in a state of arrogance, it makes no difference what history teaches us! In numerous interviews and the DVD commentary for The Final Friday, Marcus claims that his film was a "Friday the 13th film made by geeks for the fans." I couldn't believe my ears! A Friday the 13th film? Fans?  Well, not only is this not a pure Friday the 13th film, but Marcus must have miscalculated something because most ended up hating the film!

Throughout the commentary on the DVD, neither Marcus nor Lorey convince the listener that ever did they take the production of the film seriously. During several special effects scenes throughout the film, Marcus claimed the effect was only done because he thought, "it looked cool."  But however, I don't entirely disagree with everything Marcus brings up in the commentary. At one point, he says, "we were really lucky, we had no right helming a movie at this point in our lives...." Personally, I couldn't agree more.

The Final Friday posed many problems for many (but of course not all) dedicated fans. The only way the film could make any sense is if you do in fact ignore the previous films as Marcus intended. But here lies the problem: most fans cherish the films that preceded it, thus, they rather not ignore them. Why would they want to ignore them? The previous films are what attracted us to the series in the first place!

Because there are just so many conflicts within this film in regards to its relevance to the Friday legacy, I have no choice but to list them. Bear in mind, that by listing the flaws with the Newline films, I'm by no means assuming nor claiming that all films made during the Paramount era are flawless.  However, what I am in fact saying is that the Paramount flaws are not of the same severity as those found in the Newline films. These flaws would ultimately and significantly change the look, feel, and continuity of the series. The below major flaws found in The Final Friday are posed from fan perspective, if taking the previous films into consideration.

Perhaps for the above reasons, the film failed both financially and with the fan base. To the many fans, the franchise was murdered, but not because Jason was cast into Hell by a magical dagger, but rather because the film didn't fit anywhere into the series. Not only didn't it have the Friday the 13th name, it ignored all the films that came before it. Fans just didn't know what to do with it.  It would soon be believed that the only positive aspect to come from the film was that it taught us what could happen when you place a legacy into the hands of immature amateurs. Like a little child playing with a broken radio, Marcus and Lorey put parts together that just didn't make any logical sense. But lets not place the blame entirely on them, but rather the guy who hired them in the first place, Sean Cunningham.

Without a doubt, both Friday the 13th and slasher genre fans should, at some degree, show some respect to Cunningham, since, after all, he did kick-start the franchise, and the slasher genre for that matter. But what are the fans to think when the founder of their favorite series begins to harm that very same series? I'm by no means trying to make the argument that Cunningham is a bad guy, but what I am claiming is that by no means is he in any artistic position to make choices for a well established series that, for the most part, he had no involvement in. Legally yes, but artistically? Far from it. Cunningham admits to have never seen any of the Paramount sequels. Thus, it becomes quite apparent why Cunningham's supervision of The Final Friday project was minimal and worthless. He knew so little of the series, that he suggested that Marcus to get rid of that "damn mask." Now, of course he's the producer and in charge of direction of the film, but wouldn't it make more sense to give that job to someone with more experience with the series, or at least to someone who has seen them? He has only seen one Friday the 13th film up to that point, his own! How can you make a sequel to a series of films you have never seen? The answer becomes obvious: You ignore them! This wouldn't be the first moment in the history of the franchise where fans would ask that same question.

Seven years would pass without a new Jason film while Freddy Vs. Jason lingered in limbo. One thing led to another and eventually Jason X was born. According to Cunningham, the project was green lit to keep Jason fresh in the minds of the movie-going audience until Freddy Vs. Jason hit screens. So in other words, Jason X was merely a marketing tool, nothing more. This move made it clear to many fans that he was not concerned with sustaining a loyalty with the fan base. This becomes quite obvious after seeing the film.

Now, the flaws with this film are quite obvious. Ever since The Final Friday, it seemed as if Cunningham and those he hired were intentionally insulting the fans in an attempt to destroy and kill off the good name of Friday the 13th.  At least The Final Friday was set at Jason's original hunting grounds, but now space? Not only should they have learned for a second time that doing something different with this series doesn't work, but they also didn't take into consideration that throwing an iconic character into space doesn't work either. We've seen the unpleasant results of placing the Leprechaun and Pinhead into space, but now Jason? James Isaac, director of Jason X, claims to have wanted to do something so different with the Jason legacy, but when we take a general look at the horror genre, the space theme is not that uncommon.

In regards to when the film would take place, setting the film in the future was clever, in that it gave much leeway for changes to occur to the character. In this respect, setting the film in the future acted as a kind of loophole for many problems, such as the new mask and flesh. It also set the film outside the continuous timeframe of the pervious films.  This eliminates the same struggle fans had with The Final Friday. With The Final Friday, where we knew it was set in the same time frame due to the minimal change in technology, setting, etc. But with Jason X, we know its outside the time frame because it tells us so and we can see it for ourselves from the environment, therefore, we don't struggle with the question of where it belongs in the series. In this respect, the film is a very slight improvement over The Final Friday (very slight).

In Jason X, although the Paramount spirit of Jason had been resurrected to hack up teens in good eighties fashion, the feel and setting of the film distracted fans from the long-gone Jason mentality that returned to the series. Jason had a new look, new arsenal, new turf, and new century. It was fast paced, brutal, and aggressive like the original films without all the mystical aspects to bog down the pace as with the previous film. Although the film did work logically to some extent, the fans didn't want it. To most fans, a futuristic Jason in space is like having anchovies on your ice cream. Could you have ice cream with anchovies? Of course you could, but would you want it? Probably not. Anchovies don't belong on ice cream and Jason didn't belong in space. Placing him in space would soon make Jason X the major embarrassment of the series.

In 2002, production finally began on the Freddy Vs. Jason project.  Soon after, a website was created to promote the film, allowing fans to get their first glimpse of the movie from several promotional photos and a short minute long trailer. The horror world was now in an uproar.  Like many of the dedicated fans, I remember watching the trailer, repeatedly, and from what little was shown in the trailer, I had high hopes. It made a small reference to the first of each film in each series and presented Jason as the dark mysterious character he truly is. Although the trailer was short, with quick cuts of small scenes, making it difficult to really grasp the feel the film would eventually have, I was hopeful and excited. Over twenty years of bloodshed would lead to this single film. Two major horror franchises were now crossing paths causing the slasher genre to finally come full circle.

While many fans were excited to see the two legends in the same film, others were skeptical of whether Newline could pull it offwhile remaining faithful to Friday fans, since, after all, they had already damaged the series with Jason Goes to Hell and Jason X. But once it was released to the public that Kane Hodder was being replaced by a Canadian stuntman in the new film, suspicions of disloyalty to the Friday fan base were once again made a reality. When Newline decided not to have Hodder reprise his role, they at the same time decided not to use the well-established Jason character we grew to love.

When I finally saw the film, it was at a rundown theater jammed with young children. Because of a black out that occurred the day prior, this was the only local theater open. I didn't care though, I was just glad that I'd finally see the film. As I watched the film amongst the loud energetic crowd, I took each frame into consideration, while at the same time crossing my fingers in hopes that Newline didn't screw up what could be the most significant slasher film in the genre's history. After witnessing the first few kills by Jason, I tried to refrain from screaming, "That is not Jason!" Suddenly, a wave of disappointment washed over me as I continued to watch the film.

Walking out of the theatre after had seeing the film, I was a bit confused. I left scratching my head, unsure of whether I liked it or not. The friend beside me asked of what I thought, and I remember simply telling him, "I'm not sure." I was certainly glad that it did the Jason legend justice, but there was certainly something with the film that just didn't feel right. With the exception of a few plot points, the story was decent. Logically, it worked as a sequel to The Final Friday and The Final Nightmare. In that respect, it was an improvement over both The Final Friday and Jason X and even Wes Craven's New Nightmare (another film which failed at attempting something new). But the Jason character itself was vastly different from what we were used to and the death scenes seemed cartoonish in the Nightmare on Elm Street style, not Friday the 13th. After watching the film several more times, those elements that made the film feel awkward (and not a good awkward) became more obvious, as listed below.

What brought about these major problematic flaws? Why was the look of the film so drastically different and at times awkward in relation to the Nightmare and Friday series? The answer to this question would be the largest mistake Newline Cinema would make with the production of Freddy Vs. Jason: hiring Ronny Yu. Hiring Ronny Yu for Freddy Vs. Jason is like hiring a car mechanic to build a space shuttle. According to Robert Shaye, CEO of Newline, the choice to have Ronny Yu on board as director was based upon his previous horror/comedy film, Bride of Chucky, and that he was Asian. Now, if you're a true fan of the Friday the 13th series, you know where I'm going with this. First of all, Bride of Chucky was a retarded and ridiculous film that made a mockery of the Child's Play series. Frank Mancuso Jr., who produced the Friday films during the Paramount era, had one major rule for his directors to abide when making a Friday the 13th film: Do not make fun of Jason. Newline obviously didn't hold the same respect for the character and decided to hire a director that had already made a major contribution to the mockery of another horror series.

But more importantly, lets take a closer look at the second reason why he was hired: Because Newline thought it'd be interesting to have an Asian perspective, or to put it more bluntly, because he's Asian. As I watched over the featurettes that came with the Freddy Vs. Jason DVD release, I couldn't believe what I was hearing from Robert Shaye. Ronny Yu directing from an Asian perspective should not be a reason to hire him, but rather a reason NOT to hire him. Both Jason Voorhees and Freddy Krueger are American pop icons made by American filmmakers for (but not exclusively) an American audience. Once you bring an Asian influence into the mix, you spoil the purity of the series.

When we take an analytical look at American, Italian, and Asian horror films for example, we see obvious differences, and appropriately so. We see variations in color, pace, composition, photography, etc. Why is this? Because we live on different parts of the world, inhabited by different kinds of people with different kinds of traditions. The Friday the 13th story is inspired by myths that originated from the old campfire tales that were once passed from one camper to another up and down the east coast of the United States. Now, a director born and raised in a different part of the world will not fully understand that tradition in the same sense as those who grew up with it. Therefore, it would only make sense to hire a director with an understanding of the American audience, or in other words, someone who recognizes their cultural perspective.

When we take an in-depth look at Yu's filmography, we notice that he's only made three American films prior to Freddy Vs. Jason. Three absolutely horrendous films! And before that, about fifteen or so unsuccessful Hong Kong flicks.  For such a significant film, you'd think they'd hire someone with more experience. But not only experience in filmmaking, but the genre as well. There are thousands of talented American directors out there that have gained more experience within the past ten years than Ronny Yu has in the past twenty years; many of which who understand the genre and have acquired a degree in the field, unlike Yu. But it gets worse. Ronny Yu never saw a Friday the 13th or A Nightmare on Elm Street film, as he admits on the Freddy Vs. Jason commentary track. This would explain the many major flaws we found in the film.

If Freddy Vs. Jason was a film that stood on its own without a prior history, I wouldn't be so concerned about its cultural relevance in regards to who was directing it. I tend to not care about characters or tales I'm not familiar with.  But because this is a sequel to two very well established franchises that spanned over two decades, I do worry. I, as well as millions, grew up with these films and we've watched them become a part of our modern American culture.  I'm by no means saying there is anything wrong with the Asian style of filmmaking. I'm saying that if I want to watch Asian filmmaking, I'll watch an Asian film. In that respect, when I watch an American film, I expect to watch American filmmaking. It's really that simple.

To conclude this autopsy report, I'd like to ask few hypothetical questions: Firstly, where will Jason be in the next 20 years? Will he be battling space aliens in a sequel to Jason X? Will he duke it out with Michael Myers in the outback of Australia? Or perhaps the Leprechaun in Nigeria? Would it really matter at this point? Of course these are just movies, but for many of us, these movies are an escape from the everyday mundane realities of life. For others, they're nostalgic and reunite us with a past we grew to love. And like many things we grow to love, we hate to see them manipulated and contorted in an attempt to "entertain a new generation," or in other words, make more money. This, along with ignorance and disloyalty is what killed the Friday the 13th series, as Newline sat back and watched the murder unfold. Most Friday the 13th fans will agree that Jason should remain on the grounds of Camp Crystal Lake, and according to the Crystal Lake legend, that's where it belongs.